Sonic Adventure: Age of Chaos
by ShadowGenerations
Summary: In order to stop Dr. Eggman's newest scheme to destroy Station Square, Sonic must embark on a mission to find the 7 Chaos Emeralds. It will bring him face-to-face with daring challenges, old friends, new faces, and an ancient force more dangerous than any foe he's ever faced - a force that threatens to destroy the entire world.
1. Prologue

_**Prologue**_

_In the past, Dr. Eggman, scientist extraordinaire, had devised many brilliant and elaborate plans to conquer the world. From turning the inhabitants of South Island into robotic slaves, to seeking the power of the seven Chaos Emeralds, to seizing control of the floating island's Master Emerald to power his doomsday satellite, the Death Egg, to unleashing his robotic assassin Metal Sonic and harnessing the power of the Time Stones to rewrite history itself. Yes, these and many more have earned Eggman a diabolical reputation was that was known the world over._

_ Yet every time, every darn time, his plans were thwarted by one force, one speedy, spiny, blue force. His name, Sonic the Hedgehog! Ever since that wretched day Dr. Eggman had first encountered that meddlesome rodent, every one of his meticulous machinations had been systematically shutdown due to his interference. And to make matters worse, he was joined by an ever-increasing circle of allies who were just as troublesome as he was. There was Tails, his annoying sidekick whose technological prowess rivaled his own, Knuckles the rough and tough guardian of the Master Emerald, and then there was Sonic's newest recruit, the flowery Amy Rose who was Sonic's number one fan. Eggman hated all of them but not nearly as much as he did Sonic! If only there were a way to rid himself of this extraordinary nuisance who seemed to possess an uncanny ability to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. If he could, the rest would fall like helpless dominoes. But how?_

_ In the following months since the shutdown of his last scheme, Eggman had been toiling away, setting the stage for his great big comeback. Deep underground, in his newest stronghold, he sat in front of his giant master computer, studying images of ancient artifacts that had been excavated from ruins found in Mystic Ruins. The most important of these were a giant stone mural and tablets he was able to decipher. His mouth curved into a wide, dastardly grin. "Just what the doctor ordered!" he said, and cackled madly as he spun around and around in his chair. Everything was falling into place. He had a new hidden base, a new line of specialized robots currently in the works, and a shiny brand new flying warship that was ready to set sail. But none of these compared to the ancient force he was about to unleash upon the world, a force known only in the distant past as Perfect Chaos!_

_ The earth outside Eggman's base opened up and his massive, dreaded warship rose into the night sky. Eggman stood atop it as it sailed through the thundering clouds that beckoned the coming storm. His mustache flailing in the winds, he saw his floating destination and grinned once more._

_ "I'm back! And this time, nothing will stand in my way!"_

* * *

**_In this new abridged version of the story _****_a few scenes and events have been removed, modified, and or chronologically altered to give it a quicker pace and tighter narrative._**


	2. A Guardian Falls

_Age of Chaos_

_**Chapter I - A Guardian Falls**_

* * *

_As far back as I can remember, I've been living here, on this dark island. Always guarding the Master Emerald from anything that could harm it. I don't know why I was given this job, why it was my fate. Destined to be here...forever!_

These thoughts ran through Knuckles' mind for what felt like the millionth time as he sat atop the huge stone steps of the altar ruins. The Master Emerald, an enormous green gemstone of infinite mystical energy, rested behind him in the center of the altar. The starry night sky he gazed up at was calm and sparkled brilliantly, while the clouds below the floating island roiled with thunder and lightning. Despite his solitary existence, however, Knuckles never felt lonely and was content with his lot in life. He was the last of his kind, the sole surviving member of a proud and mighty warrior clan. As such, he took his role as guardian very seriously and was fiercely devoted to preserving his people's legacy.

Still, as dedicated as he was, Knuckles couldn't help but sometimes wonder how his life would've turned out had things been different. What if there were no Master Emerald? What if he'd been given the choice to follow his own path in life? What would he have done? Knuckles didn't have an answer. He had spent most of his entire life protecting the Master Emerald. It was all he'd ever known. Everything else before that, his life before he became guardian, his family, the entire history of his clan was nothing more than a blur, if even that. Knuckles gave a hearty sigh and looked back. The Master Emerald glowed silently. He put his musings aside and gave them no more thought for the night. As far as he was concerned, as long as the Master Emerald was safe, all was well.

Suddenly, as Knuckles began to drift off to sleep, the island quaked, and a terrible shatter pierced the night.

"What the –" Knuckles jumped to his feet and wheeled. He couldn't believe his eyes. The Master Emerald was gone, destroyed! And standing in its place was hideous blue creature with big glowing green eyes and a visible brain. It was unlike anything he had ever seen before. It was humanoid, with long slender arms, and its body appeared to be composed entirely of living water.

"Who are you?" Knuckles demanded, his huge spiked fists clenched and fangs bared. "Did you do this?"

He didn't wait for the creature to respond and charged at it. With a warrior's battle cry, he aimed his mighty fist for its face, only to be effortlessly blocked by its arms. Knuckles blinked and retreated back. His attack did nothing at all. _This thing is strong,_ he thought. And before he could make another move against it, the mysterious invader melted its body into a puddle of blue liquid and vanished on the spot.

"Hey, get back here!" Knuckles exclaimed. "Blast it! Where did that thing go?"

And just at that moment, Knuckles felt an even stronger quake. His heart was pounding. It was starting to happen! _Without the Master Emerald's power, this whole island will fall into the ocean!_

And right he was! As Angel Island plummeted through the stormy clouds, Knuckles fled to safety as fast he could. The once floating island spilled from out of the clouds and crashed into the sea, raising a colossal wall of water that washed over the surrounding parts. And there it remained, pushed up against the rocky cliffs of the land known as Mystic Ruins.

...

Deep in the land's sprawling rainforest, a very large purple cat named Big slept on a wooden bed in a hut made of trees. The floor of the forest had shook from the impact of a massive falling object. But even that was not enough to stir the big feline from his slumber. However, his best friend, a green frog with orange stripes named Froggy, who had been sleeping on his furry white belly, was roused awake. Froggy blinked his dark eyes. There was something moving over by the edge of the stream near their hut. He jumped down and hopped over to inspect. He blinked again. It was a tiny puddle of blue liquid no bigger than himself. Strange, he thought. It looked alive. He couldn't take his eyes off it, not even as it slowly moved toward him...

At that moment, Big's unusually large ears twitched and he awoke. He yawned as he sat up and scratched his chest. Immediately, he saw Froggy sitting over by the stream's edge. He sensed that something wasn't right. "Froggy?" he said in a slow voice. "You're looking kind of weird, little buddy. What are you doing over there?" He approached Froggy, then suddenly stopped and blinked. "Am I seeing things? You've got a tail!"

Big wasn't imagining things at all. Froggy had indeed grown a long and pointy tail. But how, he wondered. Froggy was eerily silent. This wasn't like him at all. He finally turned around and Big could see there was something different in his eyes. Froggy looked past his oversized friend and hopped over to a tree stump by their bed. Sitting on it was a strange gemstone with a yellow glow. Froggy stared at it like he was in a trance. Big watched him curiously, then panicked when Froggy suddenly swallowed the glowing rock whole!

"Hey! You just ate our lucky charm!"

And then, before Big could stop him, Froggy jumped down from the stump and fled into the dense, dark foliage of the forest.

"Froggy, come back!" Big cried. He stood there momentarily, just staring into the darkness of the forest. What was going on? Why was Froggy acting like this? "Something's wrong," he said intuitively. "We've always been friends, for years."

Big knew what he had to do. He reached under his bed, pulled out his favorite black and yellow fishing rod he never went anywhere without, and hurried after Froggy. No matter what, no matter how far he may have to go, he was going to bring his friend back safe and sound. He sniffed the air and caught Froggy's scent. He hadn't gone far. There was still time.

"Hang on, Froggy! I'm coming! Oh, dear!"


	3. The God of Destruction

_Age of Chaos_

_**Chapter II - The God of Destruction**_

* * *

Far across the sea from Mystic Ruins was the city of Station Square, a wondrous metropolis known for its many attractions. Sonic, a blue hedgehog, stood atop the roof of a building tall enough to give him a spectacular view of the bright and colorful cityscape. The lights were reflected in his bright green eyes as he smiled and sniffed the moist night air. He was thrilled to be back. Having just returned from a long journey, he was ready for anything. He wondered what he should do first. Perhaps a quick run through the city streets, and then a visit to his best friend Tails. He still felt kind of down for telling him that he'd be traveling alone. He wished he had remembered to bring him back a souvenir or something.

Suddenly, Sonic's ears gave a twitch. A black and white helicopter with a searchlight came out from around a building. It flew past him and turned another corner, followed by a strange ball of light. Sonic blinked. _That's something you don't see every day,_ he thought. Then he heard sirens coming from below and looked down. Four police cars sped down the street and around the same a corner. They, too, were following the helicopter. Something was going down. Trouble! Was it Eggman? If so, the police would be no match for him. Swiftly, Sonic moved from rooftop to rooftop with astounding speed, leaps and bounds. He wasn't called the fastest thing alive for nothing!

Something dangerous was going down all right, at City Hall. But it wasn't Eggman. Instead, as Sonic observed from a nearby rooftop, it was some freakish-looking blue creature. _What on earth is that thing? _ he wondered. The police, armed and armored, had the area blocked off and the creature surrounded. The helicopter was hovering above. As it started to rain, Sonic chose to remain where he was for now and watched the scene below him unfold.

"We have you surrounded!" the leader shouted. "Surrender!"

All of the officers had their firearms drawn. The creature's watery body rippled fiercely in the rain. Its menacing eyes shone brilliantly without a trace of fear, much less submission, but with rage and aggression. As soon as it advanced on the officers, the order was given: "FIRE!" In an instant, the night exploded with gunfire. Sonic grimaced and shut his eyes tight as he looked away. _This so isn't going to be a pretty sight! _But then, once the ear-splitting sound of bullets being sprayed ceased, he heard one of the officers exclaim, "No! Our weapons are useless!" He opened his eyes again and was surprised. The creature not only remained standing, but was it was completely unscathed as well! It's liquid body had rendered it immune to their attack.

"Retreat!" the leader ordered as the creature started to advance again. A angry red glow was pulsing around its brain. It stretched its arm out and flailed it like a watery whip, striking the officers down as they tried to flee to their vehicles.

_ That's my cue!_ Sonic thought, and curled himself into a tight ball and spun through the air like a high-speed cannonball. The creature saw him coming and jumped back. Murmurs of astonishment arose from the officers behind him.

"Hey, freakshow," Sonic said, "if it's a fight you're looking for, why don't you try me on for size?"

The creature stretched its arm out again and swung. It was fast, but Sonic was faster and dodged. Then the creature joined in its other arm, its hand glowing with a violet-colored energy, and fired it straight forward. Sonic dodged that as well, but then heard a sudden crash and saw a mangled police car flip over. The officers scrambled out of further harm's way. Sonic then knew he couldn't play around with this thing. Not here. He had to finish it quickly before someone wound up injured. He flew at the creature in a rolling spin to do just that but was repelled by a defensive spin of its own, its arms protecting it the same way they had against Knuckles' attack. _He's much tougher than I thought,_ Sonic thought. In a sudden move, the creature jumped high and grabbed onto the top of a lamppost. From there it began firing its arms down at Sonic in quick succession. They were easy enough to avoid, but this was getting him nowhere.

"Is that the best you've got, ya big drip?" he taunted.

The creature seemed to regard his words. It held onto the lamppost with its left arm and powered up and enlarged the other. Sonic knew what it was about to do and readied himself. He had an idea. As soon as the creature stretched its left arm and swung down at him, he jumped and severed it with a spin. The creature hit the ground with a loud watery splat. But Sonic wasn't done just yet. He quickly chained his next attack and dealt a finishing blow to its head, splattering its entire body to bits.

Sonic stood there for a moment. Nothing happened at first. It looked as though the creature had been destroyed. But then its remains joined back together, forming a puddle. Not destroyed, but it had been injured and weakened. It slid just a few feet across the ground and escaped down into a storm drain. Sonic was left puzzled. What was it? Where did it come from? And had he seen the last of it?

"Guess I'll play with you some other time."

...

Standing atop a nearby building, a tall man with a wild mustache and an egg-shaped body stared below as the officers gathered around Sonic to thank and congratulate him. Contrary to what he had just observed, he was not dismayed by his nemesis' victory. Not at all. This had been nothing more than a test, and the results were impressive to say the least. A thunderclap roared in the sky and a flash of lightning shimmered across his dark glasses.

"Indeed you will, fool," the eggman said. "You know nothing, so go ahead. Savor your little victory while you can, for I have unleashed Chaos, the God of Destruction!" A boisterous and maniacal laugh then bellowed out into the rainy night...


	4. Codename: Gamma

_Age of Chaos_

_**Chapter III - Codename: Gamma**_

* * *

"Excellent!" said Dr. Eggman as his newest robot flashed its green eyes for the first time. "All systems – full power!"

The robot, larger than Eggman himself, stood on the platform of the machine that gave him life. His body was mostly red and black with a strip of white running down the middle of his torso. He had long legs and his right arm was a specialized high-tech machine gun. He was also equipped with a targeting device mounted on his right shoulder, a headlight on the frontal left side of his torso, and a jet booster in the shape of a red hexagonal disc on his back. The robot stared at the mustached man standing in front of him.

"Good morning, my new pet," said Eggman. "I am your brilliant creator, Dr. Eggman."

"Acknowledged," said the robot.

"That's right," Eggman said. "You are the second of my E-100 assault units. E-102. Codename: Gamma. From this day forth you are to obey my every word. Is that clear?"

"Understood."

Gamma stepped down from the platform and followed Eggman over to a door on the far left side of the lab.

"This is the shooting practice arena," Eggman explained. "Your predecessor has just completed his session, so now it's your turn. As you are more advanced, Gamma, I expect your performance to be nothing short of exemplary. If you pass this test, you'll then serve among the elite aboard my flying fortress, the almighty Egg Carrier. Now enter, and don't disappoint me."

Gamma passed through the automatic door and entered a large room. Three oddly constructed doll-like figures stood before him. Two were red echidnas and the third was a two-tailed orange fox. Gamma scanned all three. His database registered them as Knuckles and Tails, two of Dr. Eggman's most hated enemies. Gamma stared at the dolls. Their strange dark eyes glinted at him menacingly, almost as if they were alive and were going to attack him. Gamma pointed his blaster and destroyed them all with a round of shots. His aim was quick and precise.

"Targets eliminated," he said.

Gamma then journeyed down a corridor. He was on a time limit, so he had to finish this session as quickly as possible. Another set of Knuckles and Tails dolls revealed themselves. Gamma blew them smithereens as well without any effort. He was racking up points faster than he could have thought. His performance was sure to impress his master.

After annihilating yet another set of dolls, Gamma reached the end of the arena. He had one last obstacle to overcome. This new doll was unlike the others. It was a blue hedgehog that registered as Sonic the Hedgehog, Eggman's arch-nemesis. It was also a moving target, and a fast one at that. It was traveling swiftly from side of the wide room to the other on a moving poll. Gamma knew his blaster would be ineffective and transformed it into a missile launcher. Then he deployed his targeting device and locked onto the doll with a thin red laser. A single missile was fired and the Sonic doll was obliterated in a fiery blast.

"Mission complete!" Gamma said.

With plenty of time still left on the counter, the E-100 robot went back the way he came and exited the arena. Eggman was waiting for him, beaming with praise.

"Well done, Gamma," Eggman said. "You passed your test with flying colors. I hereby reward you with a spot aboard the Egg Carrier."

Just then, the door on the other side of the lab opened and another robot entered. It looked just like Gamma except it was mostly black, its blasters, of which it had two, were of a different make and design, and it lacked a targeting device. Eggman did not look too pleased to see it. "Gamma, I'd like you to meet your 'big brother,' E-101 Beta. What are you doing here, Beta? I don't recall summoning you."

Beta seemingly ignored Eggman and approached Gamma. There was something aggressive about the way he stared at him. Words were not exchanged between the two robots, but Eggman figured out what was going on. "So you want to test your mettle against Gamma, is that it?" Beta nodded to him, and Eggman cracked a thin smile. "Very well, then. This should be rather entertaining. Gamma, I'm pitting you against Beta in one-on-one combat. Let's see how you'll fare in a real battle. Both of you, head down to the lower floor."

Gamma and Beta descended the small stairway on the far right side of the lab into a large circular arena. They faced each other on opposite ends. Eggman then came down and stood at a safe distance.

"Begin!"

Beta attacked quickly by firing a missile. Gamma activated his jet booster to dodge it, but the missile followed him. No wonder Beta needed a targeting device, he thought. He twisted in midair. The missile was slow. He locked onto it and destroyed it with one of his own. A cloud of thick smoke lingered over the arena. Gamma couldn't see. Beta suddenly emerged from the smoke in flight and hit him with an aerial tackle. He fell but landed on his feet. Beta hovered above him and took aim with both blasters this time. Gamma, however, was quicker on the draw. He locked onto and struck Beta in his right shoulder. The black robot hit the ground with a reverberating clang, his wound crackling with electricity. Gamma looked over to Eggman. He was enjoying this. Perhaps, Gamma thought, a little too much.

"What are you waiting for, Gamma?" Eggman pressed, as Beta staggered to his feet. "Finish him off!"

Gamma looked at Beta. His mouth-less face didn't show it, but he was in pain. And yet, he wasn't willing to give up. He was prepared to fight to the death. Beta raised his left blaster and fired another missile. Gamma blocked it easily with a counter shot. He then aimed and hit Beta in the left shoulder, rendering both of his arms useless. Now Beta was defenseless. Gamma changed his missile launcher back into his standard blaster and bombarded him until he finally fell backward. Beta's body was thrashed but he was still functional.

"Bravo, Gamma, bravo!" Eggman exulted, clapping as he strode over to the victor. "I had a special feeling there was more to you than meets the eye. You have more than proved your worth to me." He then callously looked down at Beta. "As for you, you metallic loser, I'll decide what do with you in a little bit. Perhaps I'll keep you around as a set of spare-parts. You can never have too many of those. Now, come with me, Gamma. It's time we moved on to the next stage of development."

"Yes, doctor," said Gamma, and followed Eggman back up the stairs, leaving Beta where he lay.


End file.
